Beleaguered team

Losing faith
Nowhere in the history of governance, has corruption and the near-death of democratic institutions risen to such proportions that people are losing faith in the UPA government ('Congress has subverted democratic institutions', August 5). The writer deserves kudos for penning such a intrepid article which enlightens the common man how certain issues are thwarted to suit the UPA government, throwing to the winds the overall interest of the country. Our country has come to such a pass because we don't have a strong opposition party serving  to the interest of aam aadmi. In recent times, the Supreme Court has chided the state and Central governments for their faulty land acquisition policy and on various other issues. That's why some of the Supreme Court's judgments have come under attack by the UPA government. But we still pin our hopes on the court to do justice.
— Jitendra Kothari, via email

Plea rejected
The rejection by the Madras High Court of Chidambaram's plea seeking dismissal of the election petition filed against him by Raja Kannappan on June 25, 2009, deserves special notice ('Madras high court allows poll plea against Chidambaram', August 5). Kannappan was initially reported to have trounced PC during the counting, but suddenly lost by 3,354 votes after 'round-wise counts were stopped'. It is astonishing that this case, having far-reaching consequences, is still in the court and the interim beneficiary continues to shoulder onerous responsibilities in the Central government without getting cleared. It is not enough to take shelter under the plea of 'matter sub-judice'. In election cases, where there is obvious misdemeanour, onus must be on the judiciary to declare the verdict as fast as possible.
—CNN Nair, Mumbai

Need for training
Apropos 'Fishy story: Ghost ship & 6 men in Black', (August 5), the fishermen should be lauded for their alertness. However, it brings to the fore that the much-touted marine police programme for coastal surveillance is still floundering. Our coastal areas are as vulnerable, as they were on 26/11. The patrol boats procured are not upto the mark. The marine police is ill-trained and ill-equipped. The coastal radars scheme for detecting ships in mid-seas (20 nautical miles from the shore) is yet to become operational. The government is talking of equipping fishing boats with transponders, connected with a satellite, as an anti-hijacking measure, but what about the marine police patrol boats which also can be hijacked along with the police officials. The marine police is not trained in marine combat techniques. The marine police needs to be trained in survival techniques and navigational skills.
—Deendayal M Lulla, via email  

Beleaguered team
After the injuries to key players, Rahul Dravid finds a place in the one-day side again, despite his insipid show in the short form of the game. Dravid, who has over 10,000 runs in the ODI format, was a regular in the Indian side for most of the last decade. Dravid has made a comeback into India's one-dayers, after two years of sitting out. But it is not the right move as there are so many talented youngsters waiting in the wings. The off-form Harbhajan Singh and injured Yuvraj Singh are also notable omissions in the squad for the five-match ODI series. Harbhajan has been dogged by poor form since the World Cup. Yuvraj hasn't played an ODI since winning the Man-of-the-Tournament award at the World Cup. He missed the West Indies tour with a lung infection. It is indeed a futile attempt to resurrect a beleaguered Indian side.
—Jayanthy Subramaniam, Navi Mumbai